Major appointments to the District’s numerous boards and commissions could be put on hold until the mayor’s office changes hands, D.C. officials say. That could leave hundreds of vacancies among the many bodies that assist the executive in crafting policy.
More than 40 confirmation resolutions, including several high-level reappointments, have been introduced to the D.C. Council since June, and none have seen the light of day. D.C. Council Chair Linda Cropp, at the request of Mayor Anthony Williams, introduced 19 in September alone.
Sources say major appointments are unlikely to go forward out of respect for the new chief executive, likely to be Ward 4 Council Member Adrian Fenty. They also say to expect a new chairman of the Board of Elections and Ethics, as Wilma Lewis, whose reappointment resolution was introduced June 15, is almost certain to be replaced.
The Fenty camp asked the mayor to stop pushing confirmations, sources say, and one Fenty aide said Williams has agreed to “stall everything.”
The Williams administration, however, said the mayor hasn’t gone to such extremes, though he is said to agree with the spirit of the Democratic nominee’s request.
“The mayor has agreed to hold off on most of the significant appointments as a gesture of courtesy toward the incoming mayor,” said Wiliams’ spokesman Vincent Brown.
The District has more than 150 boards and commissions, independent bodies that provide advisory, regulatory and policy-making services. Of the 2,273 total slots, 223 are currently vacant — though the number shifts frequently based on board reorganizations, sunsets and pending appointments.
Nonvital vacancies should wait until next year, said Ward 1 Council Member Jim Graham. But there are those, such as the vacant but important three-member Rental Housing Commission, that should be filled now.
“Where you have a board or a commission that is not functioning, you have to do something,” Graham said.
